Fire Island Is Going Under And 30 Residents Still Refuse To Evacuate [PHOTOS]

Update: According to the Fire Island Facebook page, the final rescue mission of Fire Island has been completed. 14 additional people were safely evacuated from Fire Island west of Ocean Beach.

Anyone else that stays on the island will have to ride it out. Suffolk County reported that a police vehicle was lost during the operation but there were no injuries.

Original story: Of the 2,000 to 3,000 permanent residents who live on Fire Island (off the coast of Bay Shore, Long Island), there are 30 people who are still refusing to evacuate, according to Mario Posillico from the Village of Saltaire.

"Conditions are deteriorating rapidly across Fire Island. Bay flooding is a major problem for all communities, and ocean dune erosion is occurring in varying degrees along the beach, although it is severe in certain communities and locations. The low pressure associated with the storm is historic, which leads to major concern of increased flooding and erosion during the next two high tide cycles. In short, while there is not sufficient data to provide specific initial damage assessment for Fire Island, it is fair to say that this storm is tending strongly toward the worst case scenario in the worst case/best case scenario scale."